New Mexico...The Land of Enchantment.

Our road trip is under way. We left Tuesday February 24th, at 11:00am and drove to Las Cruces New Mexico to visit Great Grandma Louise Dunmar. It took us 6 hours and we stopped only a few times to switch off driving, stretch our backs (mainly Jon), get a picture with the "Welcome to New Mexico" sign and eat lunch. Mikayla did really well in the car ride, we definitely took advantage of the short breaks to do diaper changes and feed her and let her stretch her legs too.

Mikayla enjoyed meeting her Great Grandma (GiGi) and proudly wore the dress that GiGi bought her. We had a wonderful dinner with Grandma Louise on Tuesday night. On Wednesday Jon played a quick round of golf and then we all went to a small town called Mesilla where we visited the Pecan Groves, got a drink at Chopes bar and had dinner at Peppers Mexican Restaurant. We stayed two nights and left early on Thursday morning headed to our next destination - Houston, Texas.

Welcome to New Mexico Mikayla!

GiGi Louise, Mikayla and Jonathan in Las Cruces New Mexico

Mikayla and her GiGi.

Mikayla and GiGi Louise at Chopes bar.

Grandma Lousie and Jon and Mikayla (in the stroller) at Peppers restaurant

Mommy and Daddy baby pictures

So, I was looking at some of our baby pictures and I am still wondering who Mikayla looks like. What do you think?

Melanie on the left and Jon on the right

Melanie with her Oma.

Melanie's first birthday. Celebrating with her Grandpa and Grandma Connors (That's Grandma Rebel)

Jon in the tub with his sister Britt (sorry Britt it's the only other baby picture I have of Jon, lol)

Mikayla practicing Bumbo sitting!

Redneck Wedding

Picture of Mommy and Mikayla at our friend's Redneck wedding ceremony.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Mikayla is 15 weeks old today. We took her for her 3 month pictures last week. I had it timed perfectly but Sears was running an hour behind on portrait sessions so that threw off our schedule a little. We got a couple smiles out of her though and a few cute pictures before she started spitting up and screaming.

What is she doing at 3 and a half months... well, she is nearly rolling over. She is strong with her legs and pushing off on everything. When I come to her room in the morning I always laugh at where she ends up in her crib, which is rarely ever where she started out. I think before long she will be rolling over. She hates tummy time and usually starts screaming after a few minutes so we put her on her play mat or in her bouncy seat. She is strong enough to hold her head up now so we have attempted to put her in the exercise saucer, but she is still too small for it. She can also sit in the bumbo for a few minutes before she gets the gangsta lean and tips to one side. Funny to watch.

Her favorite play time is on the play mat where she can listen to music and play with all the toys that dangle in her face. She starts talking a lot and it is fun to listen to her. We'll usually sneak over and watch her too and when she sees our faces she smiles instantly. It just warms our hearts to see her so happy!

She has recently found her hands and is grabbing at toys. She also puts them and her fingers in her mouth a lot. Her hair is still crazy and sticks up. I think she might be ready for her first hair cut! Some of it is falling out in the back because she is more active and moving around a lot. There are a few little bald spots.

Here are the pictures from our Sears portrait session last week.

6 Years of Willie (slide show)

Big Willie's Birthday

When I read the advertisement for white labs I had no idea what I was getting myself into. Jon wanted a dog so bad and I was very resistant to the "responsibility" of being a pet owner. Going to pick out a dog can be quite the emotional experience. When I saw the pile of puppies all snuggled up to each other (they had just eaten and were falling asleep), I immediately fell in love. They were all white puff balls, so snugly and cute. Of course I knew that Jon wanted a male dog and I didn't have much choice in the matter because there was only one male left among the seven females. To this day I wonder if he was the runt and no one wanted him, but I thank my lucky stars that he was there and waiting for me to pick him. He was a surprise gift to Jon for his birthday. I got him at 10 weeks old. The little rascal got into so much trouble in those first few weeks and months and we've had our share of funny stories (the beach) and trying times (the surgery). But to those of you who know our Willie dog, you know that he is the love of our lives and is without a doubt the BEST dog ever. Today is his birthday. He is 6 years old and going strong. We are excited to be celebrating another year with him and we are looking forward to what this 6th year holds in store for us with our favorite son Willie. Happy 6th Birthday Willie, thanks for putting up with our shenanigans when we parade you around.

Good times in January

It is unbelievable that we're into February already, January just came and went in the blink of an eye. We had a busy month. We rang in the new year with our good friends Randy and Rachelle. Mikayla was there too, she just slept through most of it (YEAH!). I celebrated my 33rd birthday on January 7th. It was a quiet celebration marked by a few lunches and dinners with great friends and family. Thanks everyone for the lunch dates, presents and pampering. You really know how to spoil me.

Jon and I were able to get out to a few sporting events in January. We went to several Arizona Cardinals playoff games; the tailgate was fabulous and I can't tell you how exhilarating it was to see them win. It's too bad they couldn't win the Superbowl, but at least they made it there. Amazing! We also saw a Phoenix Coyotes hockey game. AND we attended one of our personal favorites... the FBR Open at the Scottsdale TPC, where we sat in the 16th skybox and watched as the rowdy fans cheered and booed all the golfers. We cheered and booed along side them too! heehee

Our seats for the game were right up close, 2nd row. Exciting to see them win!

Mikayla had her first trip to the Phoenix Children's Museum. I'm guessing she had a good time, hard to tell though because she is too young to enjoy the fun activities. When she gets older I will buy a one year pass so we can go and enjoy it more often, I know she will love it. Here she is pictured with Quinn in the pod. I think he was digging her. Also pictured are Dennise and her daughter Juliana (18 months) at the orange tubes, Jen and her daughter Angelina (28 months) painting the house and Jamey and her son Quinn (8 months) laughing it up in the tents and tubes area. We all had a blast!

In January I reconnected with some friends from grade school/junior high/high school for a dinner date. I really enjoyed the time, it felt like we picked up right where we left off so many years ago. We laughed so much. I am looking forward to seeing them more and reconnecting with other friends on Facebook and rekindling old friendships.

Tara, Pam, Me, Kelly, Tiffany

Mikayla is now 13 weeks (or 3 months on Feb.1) and she is amazing. She smiles a lot and when we make funny faces or noises she starts to laugh, it is the cutest thing. She can't stop talking and of course has a lot to say already, so we are always very engaged in her conversations. Just this week she found her hands and started looking at them more closely in front of her face. She loves her play mat and her bouncy seat with the waterfall and jungle animals. Her favorite toy is the glo-worm, it's what soothes her when she is really REALLY upset. She is growing so fast. At the beginning of January I took her for her two month appointment and she was 12 pounds and 24 inches long. And ever since her two month appointment she has been wearing size 3-6 months clothes, especially footed pajamas because she is very long legged (like her momma). It's tough to guess how much she weighs now, but if I had to guess I'd say she's close to 15 pounds. She is starting to pack on a little more chub in the thighs and in her cheeks too (fat face like momma, again).

We just love watching her grow and change. She is sitting up, although only supported by mommy and daddy. She looks at Willie all the time but he still ignores her. We like to go for walks in the stroller. It use to make her fall asleep but now she is aware of her surroundings more and loves to look around. And that question that is burning in every ones mind... the answer is YES, she is sleeping through the night. YIPPEEEEEEE!

We had a really fun month together as a family and some memorable moments with friends.

Mikayla and Derek Knight (born 1/15).

Stephanie Hooper and Mikayla

Mikayla and Molly Hooper

In January Jon was also laid off from King Pharmaceuticals, now we are both unemployed! Of course we are not the only ones hurting in this tough economy but it sure stings a little to go from one extreme to another. But we have not let it get us down. Every day we wake up with a smile on our face, optimistic and ready to start the new day. Our priorities have shifted and what gets us through is seeing our beautiful baby girl. So... in February we are planning a cross country road trip to visit friends and relatives. We want to go visit Jon's Grandma in New Mexico, good friends in Texas and make our way to Georgia to see Jon's sisters family the Traugotts and Jon's mom so that they can all meet Mikayla in person while she is still so small and precious. Look for the post in March when we get back to see our trip along the way...

What else is happening in February...stay tuned for more posts!

And... a final note... Mikayla and Willie want to wish all the February babies a HAPPY BIRTHDAY! (and a belated happy birthday to those in January too!)

Love,

The Dunmar clan